Chapter 9 Admitting the Truth

Dinner was amazing. Dylan had cooked roast beef, fingerling potatoes, and roasted carrots. His gravy was divine. Zoe had been to many fancy restaurants in her time, but nothing compared to Dylan's home cooking.

Shortly after dinner, a brand-new sofa arrived. It was cream white, had a built-in lounge, and the pillows were down-filled. The movers placed it directly in front of the fireplace in the living room, and then shortly after they installed a television.

Zoe knew this meant that Dylan was getting comfortable in her apartment. He had ordered furniture, and he was making the place his own. This made her even more nervous about needing to find somewhere else to live at the end of their six-month agreement.

As Dylan finished tidying up dinner, Zoe lay on the comfortable sofa. She knew deep down that she should be honest with Dylan about the signing bonus. He was the one who set her up with the job after all, but telling him would mean even more changes for her, mainly losing her apartment. She wasn't ready to let go of the possibility that he may allow her to stay.

Being a manager at D&D must mean that he makes decent money. He could likely afford another beautiful apartment in the city even closer to work. She badly wanted to talk to him about this, but she couldn't risk him finding out about the signing bonus. So, she said nothing.

As she watched Dylan approach the couch, he sat down beside her.

Before she had a chance to say anything, her phone lit up and her mother's name appeared on the screen. She wasn't sure if she should tell her the truth about Kyle, or lie.

Zoe wasn't a liar by nature, but she didn't want to deal with the judgment that would come along with the break-up. She didn't want to hear about how her mother was right the whole time, and how Zoe had awful taste in men.

"Are you going to answer that?" Dylan said, picking up Zoe's phone and handing it to her.

"I guess I should" Zoe responded, taking the phone from his hand, putting it to her ear, and walking away.

"Mom, how are you?" Zoe asked as she picked up the phone.

"Zoe, I haven't heard from you. Have you arrived safely?" Carolyn, Zoe's mom asked.

Here was her chance. She could say that Manitoba was beautiful and that she had settled in nicely. She could say that everything was perfect in the world.

These are all things she could have said, and yet, none of them were things she was going to say.

"Mom, I have something to tell you. I didn't go. I broke up with Kyle. I am sharing my old apartment with a new roommate because he already signed the lease and graciously allowed me to sub-let. I lost my job, but I was able to land an even better one" Zoe said quickly, trying to get it all out before she lost her nerve.

She heard her mom take a deep breath.

"Zoe, why didn't you tell me? You could have come to stay with us. You don't need to sublet your apartment" Carolyn said, sounding sad.

She hated when her mother sounded this way.

"I am fine. My new roommate is wonderful. He has been driving me around and helping me out. He even helped me get a new job working at a law office" Zoe said, smiling.

"I am hearing something in your voice Zoe that I do not like. If you just broke up with Kyle, there should be no other man in your life for the foreseeable future" Carolyn said sternly.

Dylan was not another man in her life. He wasn't even in her life! He was only there because he signed a lease on her apartment.

"Dylan – is his name. He is not another man in my life. He is a friend. Thanks for asking about my job, I am a secretarial manager for D&D, and I am doing just fine" Zoe said angrily.

Once again she heard her mother take a deep breath.

"I am happy to hear about the job Zoe. I am worried about the rest. I know you have a lot on your plate right now. If you need help, I am here. But I won't step on your toes" Carolyn said honestly.

Zoe was a bit surprised at her mother's reaction. She expected more push back from her. But perhaps her mother realized the importance of allowing Zoe to do this on her own.

Although having a bit of help was great, she didn't want to feel like she had to rely on anyone else for anything. That is what she did with Kyle. She helped with his dreams and his goals, relying on him to build a life for her, and once that didn't work out, she was left having to figure out where she fits in the world.

Never again.

As she said her goodbyes and walked back into the room, she found Dylan staring back at her intently.

"So, I guess I'm not another man in your life," he said teasingly.

Zoe never realized how thin the walls were in her apartment. She wondered if he heard the entire conversation.

"You are turning out to be a good friend Dylan," she said, sitting beside him on the couch.

"Hopefully not just a friend?" Dylan responded, nudging closer to her.

"Dylan, I can't," Zoe said, trying her best to move a bit farther from him on the couch.

Dylan smirked jokingly, extending his arm out in a stretch, and putting it behind her.

"Smart move bud" she said laughing.

Yet there it was again, the familiar pull, the scent, the shivers down her spine.

"Just get to know me, Zoe, I promise you won't regret it," Dylan said, nuzzling her hair.

They stayed wrapped in each other's arms for quite some time. No words were exchanged.

She didn't know why he had set his sights on her, or what she had done to deserve his attention. But the closer he moved towards her, the more she craved the closeness.

She could hardly take it. What was this? She had never reacted to anyone quite like this in her whole life and she had no idea what to make of it.

This wasn't a sexual pull, it was something else entirely. It was deep. The feeling of being close to him was like fireworks going off in her chest.

Dylan had set his eyes on her from the moment they met, and he wasn't taking no for an answer, and she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep saying no, or why she was saying no to begin with.

When you felt something like this for another person, even if you weren't ready for it, not much could be done to stop it.